Earlier here on Tuesday, we got our first really big rumor of the season when it comes to the Atlanta Braves and free agency. A source for Braves beat writer Mark Bowman is claiming that the Braves are apparently interested in Nathan Eovaldi. It’s a rumor that makes sense for the Braves considering what they’ve got going on with their rotation at the moment.
Speaking of the rotation, it’s becoming clear that we probably shouldn’t expect everyone’s favorite mustachioed hurler to make his return to the rotation in time for Opening Day. In fact, it’s also looking like we may not need to expect superstar outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. to return in time for March 27 as well. Both Spencer Strider and Acuña probably won’t be ready for Opening Day according to Braves President and General Manager Alex Anthopoulos (via Matt Gelb of The Athletic).
#Braves’ Ronald Acuña Jr. & Spencer Strider won’t be ready Opening Day, Alex Anthopoulos told our@MattGelb at GM meetings. First time he’s said they won’t be ready, though indicated previously it could be a month or 2 into season before Acuna ready. They’ll evaluate as go along.
— David O’Brien (@DOBrienATL) November 5, 2024
It would indeed make sense if both star players won’t be ready in time to start the season. This is Spencer Strider’s second time having the UCL in his throwing arm worked on. If you combine that with the fact that the Braves appear to be focusing on fortifying their already-strong rotation in the event of potentially losing both Max Fried and Charlie Morton, it makes sense that they won’t exactly be rushing Strider to return to the mound.
The same goes for Ronald Acuña Jr. as far as returning from a second major injury — though it’s also very clear that the Braves may need to figure out a way to make sure that the outfield is fortified if this does in fact mean that Acuña could be out until a couple of months deep into the season. Whether or not they’ll choose to fix that issue with an external option depends on if the opportunity opens up. As I mentioned in the Eovaldi article, it appears as if the Braves are gearing up to spend some money and in that vein, Justin Toscano of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution shared that AA and the Braves are looking forward to having some “opportunities” this offseason.
Alex Anthopoulos said the Braves chose to go down the path of adding payroll flexibility because they feel like there’ll be some opportunities this offseason. They don’t know where everything will end up, but they wanted that flexibility.
— Justin Toscano (@JustinCToscano) November 5, 2024
Now, whether or not that turns into Braves using that flexibility to spend on the squad remains to be seen. We’re still extremely early in the offseason and we also know that Alex Anthopoulos is the type of GM who tends to zig when others are expecting him to zag. Either way, the Braves are going to have a bit of a question mark when it comes to figuring out a way to keep the team strong for the early portion of the season should both Ronald Acuña Jr. and Spencer Strider end up being late to the party due to their respective injuries.
